500 



COMBRETACE/E. 



The seed of Terminal ia Catappa, the Ketapang, sometimes called 

 the Singapore almond is occasionally eaten. The tree is a com- 

 mon seashore tree and is often planted along roadsides. 



Myrtace^. 



The Guava, Psiclium Guava is cultivated very commonly all over 

 the Peninsula. It is a large hardvvooded shrub, of fairly rapid 

 growth. The fruit in the Straits is rather hard, and does not seem 

 ever to get so soft as it does in its native home of South America. 

 There are two varieties grown here one with white flesh, the other 

 pink. The latter is I think the best form. 



The shrub is grown from seed, and seems to thrive in almost any 

 soil unless very damp or stiff clay. 



The fruit can be eaten raw but is more often cooked and used 

 either in the form of Guava jelly or Guava cheese, or stewed for 

 tarts which are excellent. The local variety is considered by Mrs. 

 GiJNN who constantly makes these preserves to be of much superior 

 flavour to the Indian variety. The supply in Singapore is however 

 very short, and it is not procurable in sufficient quantity. 



Psidium acre,, is a similar shrub with smaller round fruit which 

 are much more soft and juicy when ripe, and very pleasant to eat. 

 It has long been cultivated in the Botanic Gardens in Singapore, 

 but is not plentiful, and has hardly been taken up by any cultivators, 



Rhodomyrtus tomentosa. The Kamunting is a very common shrub 

 all over our open ground in all parts'of the Peninsula. It is about 

 5 feet tall with conspicuous white or pink flowers, and small fruits 

 about half an inch long of a purplish colour, sweet and with a dis- 

 tinct flavour of raspberries. In Southern India the fruit is collected 

 and made into jam which is said to be excellent. Here the dif- 

 ference of climate makes a considerable difference to the value of 

 the fruit, for abundant as it is and readily as it fruits, the dampness 

 and heat of the climate causes it to flower and fruit steadily all the 

 year round, instead of fruiting all at once so that each bush at any 

 given time has usually but half a dozen fruits at most ripe, so that 

 it is very difficult to get a large enough quantity together to make 

 jam. 



Eugenia. In this very large genus scattered all over the warmer 

 parts of the world a considerable number of the species have fruits 

 more or less eatable though few if any in any part of the world can 

 be considered as first class fruits. 



The best known in the East are those belonging to the section 

 Jambosa, and commonly known to the Malays as Jambu. 



E. Malaccensis. L., (Malay apple), Jambu Bol, is a fairsized tree 

 with large leaves, and beautiful crimson flowers borne on the 

 branches. The fruit is about as big as a hen's egg somewhat pear 

 shaped or oblong narrowed at the base, white, often splashed with 

 crimson or entirely crimson, with white flesh and a single round 

 seed. The fruit has been described as better than a turnip, but 

 not so good as an ordinary apple. And indeed though eatable, it 

 has very little flavour, It can he eat en raw, and also cooked stewed, 



